Bung bushing and closure for barrels.



G.F.TERNEY,

BUNG BUSHING AND GLOSUEE FOR BARBELS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 8. 1911.

Patented Feb. 23, 1915.

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CHARLES F. TERNEY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., .ASSIG-NOR TO THE BARREL & CASK CLOSUR'E COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

BUNG BUSI-IING- AND CLOSURE FOR BARRELS.

Application led .Tuy 8, 1911.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES F. TERNEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bung Bushings and Closures for Barrels, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in bung-bushings and closures for barrels and like receptacles.

The object of my invention is to provide a bung-bushing in keeping with the present requirements for the transport and storage of liquids, and particularly beverages, and particularly malt liquors, such as beer. In the usual practice at the present time it is common to provide kegs and barrels, for the distribution of such malt liquors, with suitable tapping orifices which are provided with tap-valves or closures whereby the receptacles may be quickly and conveniently tapped for the withdrawal of the contents. ln all such cases it is necessary in addition to provide the bilge with a larger opening closed by a suitable device, in order that the receptacle may be conveniently drained, washed, coated inside, or the like, in order to keep it in good sanitary condition. A closure for such a bilge opening is the subject matter of the present invention.

With this general object in view my invention consists of a bung-bushing closure which will be positively locked against accidental opening, and which while readily opened with the proper key, cannot be opened surreptitiously with nails, wires or the like.

My invention will be more fully described in connection with the accompanying draw` ings and then particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings,-Figure l is a sectional view of a bushing embodying my invention; Fig. 2 a plan view of the said bushing; Figs. 3 and t similar views of the plug; Fig. 5 a sectional view of the plug in place in the bushing; Fig. 6 a sectional view of the key; and Fig. 7 a detail side view of the same.

Referring to the drawings, A is a bungbushing, whose inner end is rounded at the corner and flanged toward the axis of the bung, said flange being indicated at a. The

. Specification of Letters Patent.

ratentea ren. es, isis. Serial No. 637,444.

bushing is provided at its upper or outer end with an external annular flange a. The body of the bushing is in the form of a short truncated cone, and is provided exteriorly with coarse screw-threads, as indicated at a2. The interior of the bushing is stepped as shown in Fig. l, to form two interior shoulders a3, at, the former serving as a seat for the closure. The bushing is provided with cam projections a5, in the present case formed integral with the bushlng and projecting inwardly from the inner walls of said bushing, between the shoulder at and the outer face of the bushing. These cam projections, a5- (in the present example two) extend through an arc of slightly more than 90 and face each other, leaving spaces between their respective ends, for a purpose hereinafter explained. The upper surfaces of the cam projections lie in planes which are parallel to the plane of the outer face of the bushing, while the under surfaces of the cam projections are inclined, so that the projections are each thicker at one end than at the other. Near the thinner end of each projection it is provided in its under surface with wavy teeth or corrugations which extend radially as indicated at a6.

The bung closure, indicated generally at B, consists of a hollow plug having circular walls, o, a closed bottom o', and a flanged top b2, which overhangs the interior faces of the walls except at two opposite points indicated at b3, the inside of the plug being provided, at points substantially under the centers of the overhanging portions of the top, with interior radial projections, indicated at of. The plug is also provided at opposite sides with overhanging cam projections, o5, whose upper or outer faces are inclined to correspond with the inclined faces of the cam.projections in the bushing, these inclined surfaces also having radial, wavy teeth or corrugations to match and interact with those on the said cam projections of the bushing. The exterior diameter of the plug at its inner end is such that it will enter the opening of smallest diameter at the inner end of the bushing, while the outer diameter of the flanged top is slightly less than the diametrical distance between the two cam projections of the bushing. In order to make a tight closure, the plug is provided with a heavy rubber ring or packing C which surrounds the plug and rests in Contact with the flange of the top. The parts are so proportioned that when the plug is inserted into the bushing, the projections, b5 of the plug will enter the spaces between the ends of the cam projections a5 of the bushing, whereby the plug may be pushed 4down into the bushing, its packing ring C coming into contact with the seat a3 of the bushing. By now pressing down firmly on the plug the rubber ring is compressed so that by a slight revolution of the plug the thin ends of the cam projections, b5, can face beneath the thinner ends of the cam projections a5, whereupon, by further rotation, the cam projections, b5, will ride down the cam projections, a5, until the matching teeth or corrugations are engaged. In this condition, the rubber ring C is compressed and makes a liquid tight joint, while the engaging teeth prevent any accidental backward rotation of the plug, such as would result in the opening or leaking of the closure.

In the arrangement herein described, it is to be noted that the means for forcing and holding the bung plug against the annular seat a3 of the bushing are located above the liquid-tight joint formed between the plug and the seat a3. Said means comprise in this instance the cooperating locking members a5 and b5 on the adjacent faces of the bushing and plug. This arrangement has important advantages, especially in that it prevents liquid contained in the barrel from coming in contact with said locking members and thereby corroding their engaging surfaces. Corrosion of locking surfaces in bung closures heretofore proposed often rendered it diiiicult to unlock such bungs. With 4 such bungs, moreover, the products of corrosion were ground off the locking surfaces in locking and unlocking the bung and dropped into the barrel, thereby contaminating its contents.

For the purpose of inserting and removing the plug, a special key D, Fig. 6, is provided, this key, in the present example, consisting of a shank Z counterbored at its lower end and provided with a sleeve i d through which extends a pin Z2 having a head da, inside the key, the counterbore of the key containing a helical spring d, bearing on the head of the pin. The key D also has two outward-extending wings d5 at its lower end. The shape and size of the wings and of the lower end ofthe key is such that it may be inserted into the hollow plug, through the opening in the top of said plug, and then given a partial rotation to bring the wings d5 into engagement with the radial projections b4 of the plug, the pin Z2 being forced backward against the action of the spring d4 by the insertion of the key. As

soon as the key is rotated to bring the wings into contact with the radial projections b* on the inside of the plug, the spring, bearing on the pin (Z2 resting on the bottom of the plug, causes a reaction, forcing the wings of the key in strong frictional contact with the under surface of the overhanging portion of the top of the plug, so that the plug can be carried about on the key without danger of falling olf and hence may be conveniently handled in this way. Owing to the shape of the hole in the top of the plug through which the key is to be inserted and the diliiculty of acting on the radial projections by any instrument other than the proper key, the closure is safe against ordinary tampering in attempts to open it. Furthermore, the diiiiculty of such unauthorized opening is increased because of the locking teeth, since it is necessary to press the plug inward to compress the rubber packing ring and thus partly free the teeth before attempting to rotate the plug to open the closure.

The bushing is intended to be screwthreaded into the bilge portion of an ordinary wooden barrel or keg, and in such case the outer flange is bedded in a recess or counterbore formed in the barrel.

In the foregoing description and in the appended claims the terms upper under etc., as applied to parts of the bung bushing and plug are to be understood as being employed in a relative sense and for convenience in referring to the drawings. Thus, in said drawings, it is the under or lower side of the assembled bushing and bung plug which is toward the interior of the container when in use, this lower side of the device being therefore also referred to as the inner end. Similarly, those parts or surfaces located toward the other end of the device are described as upper or outer, or as being above some other part.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim is:

l. In a bung bushing closure, the combination, with a bushing having an interior seat, and cam projections inside said bushing and having inner or lower inclined surfaces each provided with a plurality of corrugations, of a plug arranged to enter said bushing, said plug having cam projections arranged to engage the cam projections of the bushing and each provided with a plurality of corrugations mating with the corrugations of the bushing, and an elastic packing ring carried by` the plug and arranged to bear against the seat to close the bung and to maintain the corrugations in locking engagement.

2. In a bung closure, the combination, with a bushing having an interior seat and interior cam projections, said projections having their lower surfaces located above said seat and provided with corrugations, of

a p1ug having cam projections Whose upper T11 Witness whereof I have hereunto axed surfaces are formed to mate With the corrumy hand this 29th day of June, 1911. gatons of the bushing, said plug having also CHAS. F. TERNEY.

an annular shoulder, and a packing ring ar- /Vtnesses: 5 ranged to be compressed between said shoul- B. S. IGELHEIMER,

der and said seat. FRANKLIN S. BAILEY.

Women of Haie patent may be cbtained for ve cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, Wemhington, D. C." 

